Vulnerability
by ColdHeartedWriter
Summary: The worst thing that could happen to a girl happens to Bellatrix Black during her final year at Hogwarts. Mentions of sex abuse and violence. Nothing too graphic, rated M to be safe.


_**DISCLAIMER:** The ideas are mine, the characters are not. If they were, the main characters would be Slytherin and we'd more about those of them who didn't love Voldemort blindly. That's a deeply misunderstood house, I think... _

* * *

The day was March 31, 1968. Bella didn't want to have dinner at the Lestrange's mansion on her last day home, before taking the Hogwarts Express for the last time, but her father was adamant about the subject. Cygnus had arranged the marriage between Bella and the elder of the Lestrange boys, an engagement that would take place as soon as the two of them graduated from Hogwarts, and the young bride had been invited to spend the day at their house to get acquainted with her fiancé's family. Soon she would be one of them after all; it would be tacky to decline the invitation.

Bellatrix protested vehemently. She had many things do before going back to the school, many tasks to finish, and some reading to catch up with. Or so she claimed. But none of her objections made the slightest difference against Cygnus' unbending will, and Druella didn't care enough about her daughter to get involved.

Narcissa was restless the entire day. She worried about her sister alone in the company of strangers. In spite of all the plans their parents had for them, Bellatrix and Rodolphus barely talked to each other at all when they were at school, and the former had wanted to avoid that gathering at all costs. So, in order to keep herself busy, the youngest child of Cygnus spent the day packing, not only her own things but also some items Bella might have forgotten due to her rushed departure. Cissy didn't seem able to get rid of the feeling that something was not right, that Bella needed help. And when she arrived at the Platform the next day, she did not board for several minutes, stretching her neck to look for her sister. She was alone, because Andromeda had gone to meet her Hufflepuff friends as soon as they crossed the wall separating the Platform from the Muggle station, and her parents had decided not to accompany their daughters again.

It didn't take long for her to find Bella. The girl walked along with Rodolphus; his brother Rabastan, a spoiled young Slytherin student; and a stout old man, that Narcissa recognized as their father. Mr. Lestrange had a loathsome expression on his face, a reputation for being as truculent as he was wealthy, and there were several scars on his hand, which, Cissy noticed not without alarm, was placed heavily over Bella's shoulder.

Bellatrix looked ill. Maybe it wasn't something anyone could spot at first sight, but Cissy and her sister had always had a connection, a bond beyond simple friendship. She knew there was something wrong. The eldest sister had a reputation for exquisite beauty. And - in addition to her long, curly, dark hair; her long neck; and her beautiful, pale, white skin - there was something on her air and manner of walking that set Bellatrix apart from the commons. She was truly a daughter of the nobility and her straight, proud posture would make that obvious to anyone oblivious enough not to know her last name.

Not that day though. For some reason, maybe the weight of that atrocious man's company, her shoulders were noticeably hunched, and there were dark rings around her eyes, as if she had not been able to conceal sleep the entire night. As soon as her eyes met those of her sister, Bella wheeled the cart faster, putting as much distance as she could between herself and her soon-to-be father-in-law. And when Narcissa found herself in her elder sister's arms, she had no doubt something was seriously wrong.

Bella didn't look at the Lestranges anymore. In fact she seemed to stand with her back turned on them purposely, but Cissy saw that the three men were watching them. The vicious Mr. Lestrange - that, rumour had it, was another of those so-called Death Eaters her father talked about so often - said something to his boys while pointing at Bella, and they laughed. Narcissa was filled with anger even though the crowd was too noisy, and she couldn't effectively hear his words.

"Where's Andromeda?" Bella's voice was so weak that it frightened Narcissa. Standing close, her arm still bracing her sister by her waist, she could see how seedy and crestfallen Bellatrix looked. It was truly heartbreaking.

"She's with the other prefects, I think." Cissy explained, upset that Andy was away when their sister obviously needed them so badly. "Come, Bella, let's find some place we can talk."

Narcissa knew she couldn't ask her sister what had happened in the midst of that crowd, so she helped Bella walk through the corridors of the train till they reached an empty compartment in one of the last carriages. As soon as they walked in, relieved at being away from the clatter the other students made running up and down the Express, Cissy let go of Bella's waist and engaged herself in shutting the blinds and magically locking the door, to make sure they would not be disturbed. That proved to be a very wise precaution; because, when she turned to her sister again, Bella had burst into tears in her seat.

"Bella, what's wrong?" Cissy rushed to sit by her side, holding her sister in her arms. But Bella was crying too desperately to be able to speak. For the longest time, she sobbed painfully in Narcissa's embrace, breaking down emotionally and releasing all the tears she had repressed the night before.

"Cissy, it was so horrible." Were Bella's first words, when she finally calmed down enough to speak. "So horrible."

They were holding each other tight, and the crying girl had no intention of letting go of that embrace. It was as if she needed to be sure Narcissa was with her, to be sure that she was real. And as much as Cissy couldn't quite grasp that, she wasn't going anywhere. The most important person in her life was now weeping hopelessly in that train compartment.

"What did they do to you?" Narcissa asked, angry beyond belief at all of the Lestranges and at her father. Whatever had happened, they were to blame for causing Bellatrix so much pain. She was scared. She had never seen her sister hurt so badly. Bella usually seemed invincible at Cissy's eyes, shielding the youngest from any harm. Now, it was Narcissa's turn to protect her big sister. And however frightened she might have been, her fear didn't stand in the way of her protective instincts.

But whenever Bella tried to speak she would break down and cry again. "I'm with you now, Bella." Narcissa held Bellatrix even tighter, feeling her sister's wet eyes on the side of her neck, fondling Bella's hair with her right hand "Everything's going to be fine. I'll take care of you." Little by little, the elder girl calmed down.

"I'm never going to be fine again," Bellatrix claimed, in a rough, hunted voice.

"What did that insufferable boy do to you?"

"It wasn't just Rodolphus." She didn't stop crying, but the tears fell quietly now, and she could speak and tell Narcissa everything.

And Bella told her. She told her how dull the entire day at the Lestrange's property had been. How sullen the mansion was. How badly it needed the grace of feminine touch, since its mistress, Madam Lestrange, had died several years before.

An aunt of Rodolphus had given the girl a tour of the property, but once the extended family had left there was very little for her to do other than sit by the window and listen to Mister Lestrange's unending talk about politics and other things she couldn't recall, distracted as she had been by the smell of the smoke of his old-fashioned pipe.

She and Rodolphus had spent very little time alone, and he didn't seem to mind that very much. The boy, like herself, was resigned that his marriage was a family obligation, and he couldn't have made it clearer that he didn't care about his young bride at all.

Still, all of that was to be expected. Bellatrix walked into that wedding entirely by the desire of her father, and if she had someday dreamt that she and Rodolphus might develop a genuine affection, she had not cared to share those ravings with anybody, not even Narcissa. They were a respectable, wealthy Pure-blood family, and she was a Black. The surname came with its witchcrafts.

After dinner, Bellatrix had claimed to be indisposed and asked permission to retire to her bedroom. All she really wanted was to get away from their company, but she doubted she would be able to sleep in any strange house, let alone a dismal place such as that haunted mansion. She changed into her nightgown, but while the girl brushed her hair the door was opened, by someone who didn't bother to knock or announce his presence.

The portly figured of Rodolphus' father stood at her door. And Bella's tears fell free when she remembered it. It was a disgusting mental picture that wouldn't go away, the old man there, his grizzly beard poorly shaved, his expensive robes exuding the smell of that filthy pipe.

"He was in your room, after you retired to bed?" Narcissa's voice had an unmistakable tone of indignation. "That's not the way of a gentleman."

"No." Bella assented. "No it's not."

But her story was not nearly close to the end. She couldn't bring herself to repeat the exact words of her future father-in-law, though she remembered every second of the previous night. There are rules at the Lestrange's manor, he had said, you see, the father, which would be me, has to approve of the bride of his son. In every aspect. Every aspect.

He closed the door behind himself, and ignored Bella's protests that such behaviour was inappropriate and unacceptable. Instead, he walked towards her slowly, each footstep advancing no more than a few centimetres of the way, but that was the point. He wanted to savour the experience.

The man got rid of his cloak, dropping it on the floor, never interrupting his walk towards the seventeen-year-old girl. Bella was scared, her heartbeats were blistering, her breath puffed, and she tripped over her feet giving several steps backwards, trying to increase the distance between herself and the dreadful man.

_You are very beautiful in those clothes, he pointed at her nightgown, I can only assume you're even more beautiful without them. _She called his name, asked him to leave, and he answered with laughter. He asked for her age, said something about preferring them young. Untouched.

Bella knew where that was going, and she tried to reach for her wand, but the man was faster and more experienced. As soon as she had the instrument in her hand he disarmed her, using his own wand to toss hers across the room. She screamed, and once again, he answered with laughter. Did she really think anyone in that house would stand against him to help her? It was not the first time something like that had happened under that roof.

Bella sobbed while telling her sister about how he overpowered her. He held her arm strongly and the more she struggled to get rid of his grip the more she hurt herself. Even now, as she sat by her sister's side, her arms, legs and entire body were painful from the bruises she had gotten the night before.

That vicious old wizard didn't seem to notice that she was struggling to get rid of kept her close to him effortlessly, using one hand, while the other touched the side of her face in a way that would be considered kind if it wasn't in fact sick. He took her hair away from her face and touched her lips with the tips of his abrasive fingers, indifferent to the pain in her eyes.

He threw her over the expensive linen sheets violently and shut the window with his wand. And he walked away. He walked towards the door, and she thought, for one hopeful moment he had would go away. But he opened the door and Rodolphus' walked in.

"She's quelled, son..." His father told him.

"Father, did you-?" Rodolphus didn't have to finish his question.

"No. This one is yours." Those were his last words before disappearing, closing the door one more time.

She was alone with Rodolphus now in that room. He had no shirt on, his hair was all messed up, and his smile was disgusting. He laughed at the girl, her nightgown torn to pieces, uselessly trying to cover herself with the sheets. Bella remembered the pain, the panic, the doubts, the repeated screams for 'no', 'stop', and 'don't' that came out of her mouth. She remembered the terrifying sound of his fastener opening.

"Bella, he didn't...?"

She simply nodded, unable to say anything any more.

Narcissa couldn't believe such a thing had happened to her sister. She held Bella tight again. Bella was crying desperately, but this time there were also tears in Cissy's bright blue eyes. She bit her lower lip, trying not to imagine her older sister, so feminine, so fragile, lying vulnerable over a bed that wasn't her own, terrified at the vicious old man making advances on her.

"Cissy, it hurt so much." Bella said, squeezing Cissy's hand as if she could still feel the pain. And Narcissa simply held her. She had never given much thought to these things; they seemed very distant, somehow. But that reality had just shifted. "I never thought it would be so painful, feeling that- It hurt. And I was bleeding, and-"

"You don't have to say it, Bella." Narcissa tried to help.

It was both painful and shameful to remember it, saying it out loud was unbearable. She had been there alone. She had had no choice, no power, and no chance to escape. She couldn't forget it, nor pretend it had not happened. It was part of her forever, an open wound, an invisible scar. And in a few months time she would marry the son of the monster that had scarred her, and she would be obliged to call him father. And there was nothing she could do to avoid it.

"Bella, do you want me to talk to father?" Narcissa offered, holding Bella's hand and squeezing it into her fingers. "He can't make you marry Rodolphus after this. He simply can't!"

"Of course he can, Cissy!" Bella cried. "You know father, he never changes his mind once it's settled onto something. He's not going to listen to you. He'll say I'm lying. Or even worse, he'll say that that's one more reason for me to go to that family. Now that I'm not-"

She couldn't say it. And Narcissa knew she was right. As cruel as it may seem, their father was a strong-minded individual. He simply wouldn't care. Bella continued:

"Please, promise me you won't tell anyone about this. I don't want anybody to know that I'm, I'm-"

"That's okay..." Narcissa promised, interrupting Bella, when once more the girl seemed unable to finish her sentence. "I won't tell anybody, ever, Bella. I promise."

"I have to marry him." She said sadly, and never before had she wished so badly that she could escape that obligation. But she had a duty to her family, to her heritage. It was even deeper than that. The older they got, the more Andromeda grew apart from them. Bella had observed her, she didn't share that sense of duty, she didn't care as much for the purity of their blood, and Bella felt her marriage would be an example for Andy - a gesture that would bring her sister closer again. She was willing to sacrifice that much.

Bellatrix tried to get a grip of herself, she dried her tears with her hands, and looked heartbroken at Narcissa.

"I'm sorry, Cissy."

"Bella, this is not your fault."

"No, Cissy, you're just thirteen years old, you're my youngest sister, I have no right to burden you with these things, I shouldn't involve you." She felt genuinely guilty. Narcissa would always be the tiny little princess that woke her up in the middle of the night, afraid of boogies under her bed.

"Of course you should!" Cissy said firmly. "Bella, I love you. I'm here for you, and you couldn't deal with this alone. You shouldn't have to. Don't ever apologize for making me a part of your life. I'm old enough for that. I've always been."

Bellatrix was the one biting her lower lip now. She looked at her sister, her expressive dark eyes thanking Cissy for simply being there. Then the blonde girl pulled Bella down, made the seventeen years old lay on the bench, with the head on her lap, and passed her fingers through Bella's hair, slowly.

"I hate that you have to see me like this."

"Like what?"

"I feel so dirty... So weak... So ugly... So used."

"Bella, they're the ones to be ashamed. Not you. You are the strongest person I have ever known. And you're beautiful. There's not one girl in the Slytherin common room who has not someday dreamed of being you, and I am proud to be your sister."

Bella said nothing, she lay there quietly, one silent tear falling from her eyes right in Cissy's lap, and she continued:

"I love you so much. And I hate Rodolphus, I hate that spoiled brat for not defending you, and I hate his entire family!" She said angrily. "And I hate father, for making you go through all of this."

"I think," Bella spoke once more, "that this is the worst thing that could ever happen to a girl. To me."

In a few weeks, that statement would prove to have been precipitated.

Bellatrix didn't sleep that afternoon, but she lay on Cissy's lap quietly for a very long time, struggling internally with her own thoughts.

Meanwhile, Cissy herself had a lot on her mind. Bella's story had made her think about things that had barely even crossed her mind before. She had been curious a few times, true, but she had never openly expressed her doubts, not even in front of her sisters who were her closest friends in the whole world. She would have time to learn about those things, she imagined, if someday she would not be too shy to ask. And none of her sisters had ever brought that subject up, considering Cissy too young to such conversations.

Throughout the story, Cissy had managed not to express how scared all of that truly made her feel. How terrifying that pain was a factor in that equation, how horrible that her own sister had to go through such a traumatic experience, how frightening to imagine that someday something like that might happen to her.

They changed into their school uniforms as the Hogwarts approached Hogsmeade Station, and Bellatrix used her wand to perform a few cosmetic spells that cleaned her face and simulated some light make-up. She didn't want anybody to even guess something was not okay. She didn't want to give Rodolphus the satisfaction of knowing she'd been affected.

By the time the train parked, they were ready, and they left the carriage together. Andromeda was waiting for them outside.

"Where were you? I looked all over the train after they released the prefects from our wagon!" She asked a bit upset at both of her sisters. The silver insignia that identified Hogwarts' prefects was proudly pinned on her uniform. She kissed Cissy's forehead, and the minute she kissed Bella's face she noticed her sister was not okay. "Bella, what's wrong?"

"Not here, let's get a chaise." Bella said simply.

Andromeda looked worried, and somewhat guilty, but she didn't protest, and the three Black sisters walked side by side, till they entered one of the thestral propelled chaises and headed to the school.

"So..." Andromeda was about to start asking what had happened when Cissy's signalled with her head to stop her. But it wasn't soon enough, and Bella spoke:

"Listen, I can't go thought this again right now, okay?" She looked out of the window afraid that she might start crying again.

They were at odds, they had been throughout summer. Andromeda had been escaping the Black's manor to hang out with Blood-traitors and Mudbloods. Bella had seen it. She had seen her sister kissing a Gryffindor boy that wasn't even Pure-blood, and confronted her about it. They had argued several times, and Bella had threatened to tell their parents the truth about the time Andromeda spent away.

Deep inside, she saw her sister's lack of pride as something that kept them apart, and she couldn't accept that. She didn't want that. And it hurt her that this afternoon Andy had not been there for her when she needed it. It didn't matter that she didn't know.

Andromeda had notice she and her sisters were growing apart, and she didn't like it at all. She felt guilty that she had not waited for Bella with Cissy at the Platform, she had been so angry! Before departing for her day with the Lestranges, Bella had said so many mean things at her; she had said so many things she didn't meant. But now Andy could see something was very wrong and as much as she decided not to confront Bella on the matter, she couldn't let her sister think it was okay not to include her. So she reached out and grabbed Bella's hand.

"Okay." She said. Squeezing her sister's hand as Bella turned to look her in the eye. "We don't have to talk about it right now if you don't want to."

Andromeda's statement however, made clear that at some point they would have to talk to her. And when the stagecoach stopped, she was the one to say they ought to find seats together on the Slytherin table.

Bella sat between her sisters for a change. It was usually Cissy who got the middle seat, but both the blonde girl and Andromeda felt very protective of Bella. Apart from her sisters, no one else seemed to notice there was something wrong with the girl, and she had a reputation that warned people not to start conversations with her, if Bellatrix Black wanted to talk to someone, she would be the one to say so.

Andromeda was too distracted waving at some friends at the other tables to notice that the first thing Rodolphus and Rabastan did when they sat together, just a couple of seats away from where the three Black were, was to look at Bellatrix. Cissy, on the other hand, didn't miss it, and she rolled her wand in her fingers, wishing for the first time she knew some non-verbal spells to cast at those two monsters right away. How dare they to even look at Bella after what had happened?

That's not all they did, however.

"Good evening, Black." Rodolphus stood up and walked towards the Black sisters. "I hope you enjoyed your stay at our house last evening." There was a snooty smile on his face. "You didn't say goodbye before boarding the train. My father was... displeased."

"Get away from here, Rodolphus." Cissy said, angrily, pointing her wand at him. In a fraction of a second Rabastan stood by his brother's side, pointing his own wand at Narcissa.

"Or what?" he mocked her attempt to defend her sister. "What could a third year kid possibly do to harm my brother?"

Bella stood up, her wand pointed at Rabastan's heart.

"A seventh year student could do a lot of damage to your sorry excuse for a body, Rabastan, I suggest you stop pointing your wand at my sister." Her voice was harsh and cold, a certain tone neither Andromeda nor Narcissa had ever heard before. "Lower your wand now."

Rabastan's eyes showed fear. Still, he only stopped pointing it at Cissy when his brother nodded signalling him to stop.

"Calm down, Bella." He was having fun with that. "Aren't you going to kiss my hand? I am soon-to-be your husband, I will demand more respect from your part. My father has been tutoring me on everything related to being a married man. I want to be prepared."

Rabastan laughed. Any other time, Bella would have attacked him fiercely, and made him regret those words the second after they came out of his mouth. But something stopped her. She remembered Rodolphus knew what had happened, he had seen it, injured her. And that held her back. She said nothing, struggling not to burst into tears.

Andromeda noticed it.

Immediately Andy stood up, raising her wand and pointing it directly at Rodolphus.

"You better find your own seats, Lestrange." She commanded. "Now."

"Or what?"

"Or I might just forget that duels are not allowed in the Great Hall and cast whatever spells come to mind directly at you."

Rabastan laughed.

"You wouldn't."

"Try me."

Bella felt heavy in her chair, shocked to find herself so vulnerable, so helpless, so unable to defend herself. Cissy kept her eyes on the fight, worried about her sister, wishing she knew a bit more than she did so she could be more helpful now that Bella needed her.

"Very well," Rodolphus gave in. "We'll be on our way. We will be family soon; I would not wish to be at odds with you, sister"

Rabastan walked away, and Andromeda lowered her wand, believing Rodolphus' would follow. But instead, he leaned down to kiss Cissy's head. She tried without success to pull him away, and before he could notice it, he had his back pressed against the wall, unable to move, and Andromeda directly in front of him, pointing her wand at him.

"I don't know what you did to my sister-" She started.

Rodolphus wouldn't act as one in a position of disadvantage. He was in the Great Hall after all; he knew Andromeda couldn't seriously hurt him. And he interrupted her, that same offensive smile on his face.

"You don't? She didn't tell you? That's absurd I'll begin to thing my future wife is embarrassed of me. That's a pity, sister, you might enjoy it. I'll tell you what: don't ask her. Come visit. I'll show you."

"Stay away from my sisters you arrogant prat, unless you want me to come after you."

"Am I supposed to be scared?"

"What's happening here?" Now that the ruckus in the Great Hall had diminished considerably and most students were seated, the scrum at the Slytherin table called the attention of some Professors, and Horace Slughorn rushed towards the focus of the ado. "Miss. Black, explain yourself!"

Andromeda lowered her wand and Rodolphus fell heavily to the ground.

"I'm sorry Professor. Lestrange was picking fights and as prefect I had to stop him before he hurt somebody."

"I see." Slughorn -pulling his arm – lifted Rodolphus up. Andromeda was one of his most brilliant students, like both her sisters and many others in the family. Lestrange on the other hand was a spoiled young man, who didn't achieve the O.W.L.s he needed to continue with Potions on his N.E.W.T.s level... He was nothing like his ancestors, a true disappointment. It was not surprising that Slughorn found it easy not to question Andromeda's words. "Trouble-maker, Lestrange? Are you trying to loose points for Slytherin before the year even starts? No, detention, that's what you deserve. You will scrub the floor of sickbay three times a week for a month, without the use of magic. Pomfrey was just complaining she needed some help with cleaning, over the staff table."

"Yes, Professor," he knew arguing would be futile, but his creased eyes made his anger quite obvious.

"Good. Now go sit over the other end of the table and stop looking for trouble." He continued babbling with himself even after Rodolphus took his way. "Seventh year student making trouble on the first day, not good, not good… Oh! Andromeda, dear!" He turned to face the girl once more. "The matter is settled; don't worry about it any longer. Welcome back!"

"Thank you, Professor." She forced a smile to disguise her concern about Bella.

"I've been looking forward to seeing your performance this year, N.E.W.T.'s levels at least, heh? Well, sit down; the new students are nearly ready for the Sorting Ceremony!" He walked back to the staff table, greeting Cissy, Bella, and some of the students in his club of favourites.

When he finally left, Andromeda sat once more, and it couldn't be clearer to her how distressed Bella was. She held her sister's hand under the table, squeezed it lovingly and whispered something on her ears, something about her not being alone.

Soon the Sorting Ceremony began, and the majority of the students were distracted by the Sorting Hat's singing and the slow segregation of new comers. Some names were well known, some unheard of, and all of them happily acclaimed as soon as the Hat yelled his decision. The Black sisters, however, ignored the celebrations. Cissy boiled with angry at the Lestrange kids, disgusted that she had not been strong enough to pull Rodolphus away and avoid his kiss, and Andromeda, was worried about what might have damaged Bella so badly. She had never seen her sister refrain from attacking, even if the victim didn't exactly deserve it, and yet a few moments before she had stood completely motionless.

Once the food appeared in golden platters all over the table, Bella served Mash potatoes on all of their plates and poured some pumpkin juice in Cissy's glass. She thought she was okay, but as soon as she tried to eat some of her food a nauseating wave overpowered her. She raised her hand to her head and looked down, very aware that she wouldn't be able to eat anything that night.

"Bella, are you okay?" Andromeda had kept a closer eye on her sister, and noticed the strangeness of her movements.

"Don't you want to eat something; we ate nothing at the train..." Narcissa reminded her. The youngest of the three of them was starving, and it was hard to stop eating long enough to even say that to Bella.

"I'm not hungry." Bella claimed, and at least they could speak without the fear of being observed, for everybody was distracted eating and catching up with the stories of the summer.

"Are you sure? You should eat something." Andromeda said, concerned.

"I can't." Bella stated finally. "I want to get away from here."

Andromeda nodded. She understood her sisters' desire to be alone, and Bella was so weak that the girl thought only fair to break the rules and give her the password for the common room before the director's speech. She whispered the password in her older sister's ears, and watched Bella walk away, as discreetly as possible.

"Where's she going?" Cissy asked.

"Common Room."

"Should I go along?"

"No, stay, she said she wanted to be alone for a while. You seem to be hungry, anyway!" Dromeda smiled at her kid sister.

"I am. It feels like I haven't eaten in days!" Cissy said, sitting where Bella had been.

Andromeda touched the back of her sister with affection. She thought it best not to inquire about whatever was wrong with Bella. She had no doubt Cissy knew, there was certain sadness in her eyes that didn't belong there, but there were too many people present.

"I'm glad you're with us Andy." Cissy said, all of the sudden.

"We're sisters, we'll always be together."

She meant that. But it wouldn't be long till she too was proven wrong.

Later that night, Andromeda came out of her dormitory to find Cissy still awake, alone in the Common Room, drinking some hot chocolate. It was not surprising. Everybody had called it "a night" early, excited as they were for the first day of classes and tired of the long journey in the Hogwarts' Express. But Cissy had more than enough reason not to be able to sleep that night.

"It's late."

"Did you..."

"I know what happened." Dromeda sat heavily next to her. "She's asleep now."

Cissy nodded. One second later she burst into tears.

Andromeda held her in her arms.

"I know, I know, it's awful."

"How could they do this to her? It's Bella, Andy, Bella! They hurt her, they, they-"

"I know." Andromeda said, sadly, and Cissy stopped crying, drying her tears on her sleeve. "It's awful. But you don't have to be afraid; we won't let anything like that happen to you ever, little sister."

Cissy nodded, drinking the last drops of her hot chocolate.

"If father was not so blind by his pride, if he wasn't so eager to marry her to a Pure-blood this wouldn't have happened. I will not let him thrust his beliefs upon me; I will not let the same thing that happened to Bella happen to me." She said, more to herself than to her sister.

"You're a Black, Andromeda. Bella always said that had to come first."

"Yes, and look what happened to her."

"What are you saying?"

Andromeda breathed deeply. That was neither the time nor the place to have this discussion. Cissy was not old enough, she didn't understand. Or maybe she did, and she was just too much like their elder sister.

"Never mind," Andy answered finally. "Bella is going to need us now. We should stick together, that's all that matters."

Cissy agreed, hesitantly, and it took her a while before asking the question that had been bothering her all night:

"Will she be okay? In the end?"

_I don't know. _Those were the first words to come to Andromeda's mind. What had happened to her sister was unthinkable, too horrible to understand. She herself needed some time to think about all that, to cry, to feel sorry that such a terrible thing had happen to Bella. She took Cissy's hand, and called her to walk to the dorm before answering, there were classes in the morning, she needed to sleep even though Andromeda herself would be awake the entire night.

"She'll be fine. The worst has already passed."

How little she knew.

* * *

_**AN: **I'd like to thank** Smile Life Away **for beta-reading this, I hope the length is not too discouraging. _

_Please Review, I'd like some feedback on this, before uploading the next chapters._


End file.
